A group of educators in regional Victoria has launched a program to target what they say is a lack of Indigenous culture and history taught in schools.

Four years ago, Shepparton teacher Tim Warwick discovered one of his students was a descendent of prominent Indigenous activist William Cooper, but had never had the opportunity to learn about his ancestor in school.

"He [Mr Cooper] is an amazing figure of national significance, and I thought, that shouldn't happen at any school in our country, let alone a school in our area," Mr Warwick said.

Shepparton has Victoria's largest Aboriginal community outside of Melbourne, and is part of the region that once hosted significant cultural and political movements such as the Cummeragunja walk-off.

Prominent activists such as Mr Cooper, considered the father of the Aboriginal civil rights movement, and Sir Douglas Nicholls have called the town home.

But a lack of Indigenous culture and history was identified within the region's schools.

That was until the local principal's network and Aboriginal community collaborated to produce the Kaiela-Dhungala First People's Curriculum.

The program covers the local history and culture of Indigenous people, encompassing an interactive curriculum for students in Prep to Year 10.

Almost half of the schools across the region have rolled out the content.

"It covers our civil rights history, local art and people, and connecting to country and to elders," Mr Warwick said.

"Our hope is that the students are not just learning about the Stolen Generation or our ancient past, which is still really important, but also about the living, strong cultures that exist in our community.

"I do hope that it breaks down stigmas, as there would definitely be parts of our community that would have a negative attitude towards Aboriginal people, and this is focused on the positives that are there, and the strength that is there."

Building knowledge about historical events

Wilmot Road Primary School student Kane Nicholson said he had known very little about local Indigenous culture when he was approached by his teacher last year.

"[She asked me] 'What do you know about the area around Shepparton and Mooroopna called The Flats?' And I had no answer to give," he said.

"I later learnt that she had asked all the kids in Years 5 and 6, and not one person had an answer.

"But move forward to today and I can give you lots of knowledge about this area [where the Cummeragunja walk-off occurred].

"In school we have mapped where The Flats were, we've written timelines about historical events at The Flats, and we've read all about life there, and I've really loved learning about our history."

A journey towards education

Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Goulburn Valley chairwoman Miranda Edwards said an important part of the program was consulting with elders, as well as training teachers to become aware of cultural boundaries.

Ms Edwards said it was important the histories and cultures were taught, but they needed to be completed with care.

"I have presented this program around the state and a lot of people have enquired about it, but we always go back to the start and talk about the importance of community consultation, and that takes time," she said.

"This program is a unique one in Victoria, and there's definitely an opportunity to expand it, but it has to be done right and tailored to specific areas."

Teaching important for Indigenous students

Currently, a student's access to knowledge and understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures and perspectives depends on the commitment of individual schools and teachers, although the learning is a mandatory component of the curriculum.

Each school is encouraged to develop its own teaching and learning program — based on the curriculum — that best utilises local resources, expertise and context.

Mr Warwick said while history textbooks covered Indigenous history, there were many communities that had not tapped into local resources.

Charles Darwin University linguist and researcher Samantha Disbray said the teaching of Indigenous history and culture in schools was vital.

"When communities are willing to share their knowledge, we can further understand how this country has been lived on in the past, and how we can better steer it into the future," she said.

Dr Disbray said change around education was particularly important for Indigenous students to have their identity recognised.

"I think learning is a great bridge builder, and so by having more understanding about our history and the richness of the culture around us, it will be helpful for combating issues like racism and trauma," she said.

"For our Indigenous students, it's been shown that having your identity recognised and prized is a really important wellbeing outcome.

"That has many spin-offs in all sorts of aspects of learning, employment, of health, incarceration levels and so on."

The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority said in a statement schools had flexibility in the design of their teaching and learning program, and commended the Kaiela-Dhungala initiative.

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